Semi trailer manufacturer sued by feds over worker pregnancy discrimination

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a lawsuit against trailer manufacturer Wabash National Corporation over claims that the company discriminated against a pregnant worker.

The EEOC filed the suit on September 10, 2024, making it the first federal lawsuit in support of the New Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which requires an employer to provide a “reasonable accommodation” to a qualified employee’s known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless the accommodation will cause the employer an “undue hardship.”

Officials say that Wabash denied a pregnant worker’s request to be transferred to a different position that did not require her to lie on her stomach. Instead of accommodating this request, Wabash allegedly forced the worker to take unpaid leave and “ultimately gave her no choice but to return to her position without modification.”

The worker resigned in her eighth month out of fear for the health of her pregnancy, the EEOC stated.

Wabash is also accused of unlawfully requiring the worker to present medical documentation.

“Protecting pregnant workers is a strategic enforcement priority for the EEOC,” said EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows. “This is the first lawsuit we’ve filed to enforce the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), but it’s just one of the many ways the EEOC has been working to fulfill the promise of the PWFA since it took effect. The EEOC will continue to use all its tools – including enforcement, education, and outreach – to ensure workers are aware of their rights, and that employers meet their responsibilities under this new law.”

Kenneth L. Bird, the EEOC’s regional attorney in Indianapolis, said, “The PWFA provides critical protections for employees who are too often pushed out of the workforce because of pregnancy, childbirth, or related needs. This case will educate the public about those protections and help to ensure that employers heed them.”

EEOC Trial Attorney Kathleen Bensberg added, “No one should be forced to choose between their livelihood and the health of their pregnancy. We are eager to vindicate this worker’s rights and secure relief to prevent future pregnancy discrimination.”

Earlier this month, a jury in St. Louis ordered Wabash to pay $462 million for a double fatality under-ride crash in 2019.